Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr
| birth_place = Egypt | death_date = | death_place = }} Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr ( ) (born 18 March 1963), also known as Abu Omar, is an Egyptian cleric. In 2003 he was living in Milan, Italy, from where he was kidnapped and allegedly later tortured in Egypt. This "Imam rapito affair" prompted a series of investigations in Italy, culminating in the criminal convictions (in absentia) of 22 CIA operatives, a U.S. Air Force colonel, and two Italian accomplices. Early life He is a member of al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, an Islamic organisation dedicated to the overthrow of the Egyptian government. The group has been linked to the murder of Anwar Sadat in 1981 and a terrorist campaign in the 1990s that culminated in the November 1997 Luxor massacre. As a result it is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and European Union. After the Egyptians declared the group illegal, Nasr sought asylum in Italy. Abduction by the CIA On February 17, 2003, Nasr was abducted by CIA agents as he walked to his mosque in Milan for noon prayers, thus becoming an effective ghost detainee. He was later transported to a prison in Egypt where, he states, he was tortured.Wilkinson, T. and G. Miller. (2005). "Italy Says It Didn't Know of CIA Plan". The Los Angeles Times, July 1, 2005. In April 2004, while his incarceration had been downgraded to house arrest, Nasr placed several phone calls from Egypt to his family and friends. He told them he had been rendered into the hands of Egypt's SSI at Tura prison, twenty miles south of Cairo.Parla l'avvocato di Abu Omar "L'imam sarà liberato a giorni" He said he had been subjected to various depredations, tortured by beating and electric shocks to the genitals, raped, ABU OMAR: "IN EGITTO FUI STUPRATO, BERLUSCONI LO SAPPIA", La Repubblica, and eventually had lost hearing in one ear.Grey, S. and D. Van Natta. (2005). "In Italy, Anger at U.S. Tactics Colors Spy Case". The New York Times, June 26, 2005. At the time of the calls he had been released on the orders of an Egyptian judge because of lack of evidence. Shortly after those calls were made he was re-arrested and placed back in prison. Nasr's case has been qualified by Swiss senator Dick Marty as a "perfect example of extraordinary rendition". On 4 November 2009, an Italian judge convicted in absentia 22 CIA agents, a U.S. Air Force (USAF) colonel and two Italian secret agents of the kidnap.CIA agents guilty of Italy kidnap BBC Eight other American and Italian defendants were acquitted. USAF Lieutenant Colonel Joseph L. Romano, at the time of the conviction commander of the 37th Training Group of the 37th Training Wing, and 21 of the American defendants received five-year prison sentences. Former Milan CIA station chief, Robert Seldon Lady, received an eight year prison sentence. The convicts were also ordered to each pay 1 million Euros to Nasr and 500,000 Euros to Nasr's wife.Barry, Colleen (Associated Press), "Italy convicts Air Force O-6 in CIA kidnap case", Military Times, November 4, 2009. These convictions have been viewed in the media as being largely symbolic as none of these individuals are currently in Italian custody, and the Italian government has declined to seek their extradition.http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/339ab960-c97d-11de-a071-00144feabdc0.html The abduction prompted a series of investigations and intrigues within the Italian intelligence community and criminal justice system; in the Italian press, these are collectively referred to as the Imam Rapito (or "kidnapped Imam") affair. Release in February 2007 On February 11, 2007, Nasr's lawyer Montasser el-Zayat confirmed that his client had been released and was now back with his family.Egypt releases 'rendition' cleric, BBC, 12 February 2007 After four years of detention, an Egyptian court ruled that his imprisonment was "unfounded."International Herald Tribune, February 16, 2007, Italy indicts 31 linked to CIA rendition case He still could face arrest as a suspected terrorist and associate of terrorists if he returns to Italy. However, Nasr's lawyer has said that Nasr intends to return to Italy. Document leak In 2010, diplomatic documents were leaked outlining pressure the United States used in an attempt to stop Italy from indicting the CIA agents who kidnapped Nasr. According to the documents, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi assured US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates that he was "working hard to resolve the situation." Berlusconi also criticized Italy's judicial system as being "dominated by leftists".[http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,735268,00.html "US Pressured Italy to Influence Judiciary", Der Spiegel. See also *Human rights in Egypt *Montasser el-Zayat *Imam rapito affair *Returnees from Albania *Sabrina De Sousa *Mark Zaid Notes and references External links *A lot more information on Abu Omar and controversy in Italy *Rendition Cindy Sheehan? CIA Fugitive From Italy Justice Is Located *CIA Ruse Is Said to Have Damaged Probe in Milan: Italy Allegedly Misled on Cleric's Abduction, Washington Post, 6 December 2005 *A Cleric's Journey, Washington Post, 6 December 2005 *Ex-Aviano officer won't comment on alleged abduction, Stars and Stripes, 10 December 2006 *Italy indicts 31 linked to CIA rendition case, International Herald Tribune, 15 February 2007 *Amnesty International interview. Category:People subject to extraordinary rendition by the United States Category:Missing people Category:Egyptian imams Category:Egyptian Islamists Category:Sunni Islamists Category:History of Milan Category:1963 births Category:Living people Category:Egyptian Sunni Muslims Category:Egyptian prisoners and detainees Category:Prisoners and detainees of Egypt Category:Egyptian refugees Category:Expatriates in Italy Category:Italian Sunni Muslims de:Abu Omar eo:Hassan Mustafa Osama Nasr fr:Nasr Oussama Mustafa Hassan id:Osama Moustafa Hassan Nasr it:Caso Abu Omar nl:Osama Nasr